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John Fealey 1964 - 2024
Remembered by David Britland
John
Fealey was a kid when I met him. I was working at Paul Stone’s Ace Place in
Liverpool and John would bunk off school to come in and talk magic. Well-read
and with a fondness for the magic of Slydini, he quickly became part of our
Saturday magic group, as me, Stephen Tucker, and John Brown met with Bob Ostin
and Joe Dignam at Cousin’s Café in Dale Street. Later, when the adults had left,
we’d go to The American Pancake Kitchen to continue a discussion about magic
that felt like it would never end.
It ended, but only temporarily, in the 80s, when me, John Brown and Stephen
Tucker moved to London. 1984 saw the arrival in Liverpool of John Lenahan. He
was in England to perform street magic at the Liverpool International Garden
Festival. John Fealey went along too, watched Lenahan perform and was inspired.
This was the beginning of John Fealey’s career as a street performer.
By the time we met again, in London, John was a highly accomplished performer
and well regarded by his peers. At Covent Garden he teamed up with juggler Alex
Dandridge. By then John had also added juggling to his repertoire but it was his
comedy interactions with the audience that made him stand out from the rest. He
loved comedy of all kinds, everything from silent slapstick movies to
contemporary stand up. This gave him an encyclopedic knowledge of comedy stunts
and routines and he never seemed to be at a loss for something to say or do that
would entertain a crowd.
He became part of comedy teams like The Florists, The Bowlers, and The Uncles,
working with Alex Dandridge, Andre Vincent and Noel Britten. He teamed up with
Eddie Izzard and, at magic conventions, David Williamson. As a stand-up he was
very popular in Europe, particularly the Netherlands, and you’ll find some
extracts of his act on YouTube.
John was a master of improvisation and possessed many skills. He could perform
magic, juggle, ride a unicycle, and conjure up hilarious slapstick stunts. And
yet it wasn’t for any of these that audiences remembered him. They liked him not
for what he could do but who he was, a jubilant eccentric character who could
turn a drab day into a joyful one.
John worked with the Palazzo group who run upmarket Spiegeltents across Europe.
The shows feature circus and variety acts, the perfect environment for a lover
of vaudeville and music hall. John played and often organised the Dinner Show.
He starred as the host, in the guise of a comedy chef ‘from England,’
introducing the acts, keeping the show moving, and performing his own spots. He
loved those shows because they virtually gave him carte blanche to create new
comedy skits, resurrect old ones, and let him do what he did best, work the
crowd. The Palazzo gigs ended in 2020 when covid brought just about everything
to an end, and John returned to Liverpool.
It was then that John’s health began to deteriorate. He had been diagnosed with
adrenomyeloneuropathy, a genetic condition that affects the spinal column. In
John’s case, if affected his balance and coordination which prevented him from
performing. Though he no longer performed, he kept up his interest in comedy and
magic. He always had a book, movie, or podcast to recommend or would tell me
about the latest brand of cards that he found favour with.
John left little behind in terms of a physical legacy. He didn’t really do
anything that anyone else did to raise his profile. He didn’t broadcast his
opinions on magic or anything else but in private he was always willing to lend
a helping hand. As his friend Matt Colman remarked on Instagram, if you ran an
idea by John, he would instantly make it 50% better. However, a Google search
will turn up some photos of John from his Palazzo days, and I can recommend an
interview John gave to the podcast Stories from the Pitch. It was recorded in
2012 and he explains why he never had an 'act,' business card or a web presence,
and why he loved performing.
https://www.buskerhalloffame.com/audio-files/busker-hof-20-interview.mp3
David Britland, August 2024